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Published by Radar Online MEGA Prince Andrew has been spotted for the first time with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson after Queen Elizabeth stripped him of his military titles and royal patronages earlier this week. The Duke Of York is reportedly fearful of being thrown into deep financial troubles after being court ordered to face his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, concerning sexual assault allegations leveled against him. According to the DailyMail, the prince was pictured with his former partner —nicknamed Fergie— driving in their Range Rover as they were leaving their home in Windsor on Saturday. Paparazzi caught the two sitting in their car together with Fergie in the passenger seat while Andrew sat behind the wheel. MEGA The pair was spotted in a two-car convoy which implies the prince was still given royal protection. Last week, UK security minister Damian Hinds could not confirm whether taxpayers would continue to fund Andrew’s security arrangements after the Queen dethroned the royal. Andrew is currently facing a civil lawsuit filed by Giuffre, who claimed she was forced to have sex with him when she was 17 and kept as a sex slave by Andrew’s former friends, Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The prince has denied the allegations and attempted to have his case dismissed, but the judge who presided over the case turned down his request. Following the lawsuit, an insider revealed the prince had expressed his concern to friends over his financial state because of the case. “Until very recently, it appears the absolute enormity of this case and the consequences he faces has not hit him [Andrew],” the source explained. “Now the bills are mounting up, and the possibility of a settlement, or even worse a judgment against him, is being widely discussed — he fears complete financial ruin.” The informant added, “there is a very real prospect of him being completely broke.” Reports indicated Andrew’s fees for his defense team have added up to at least $2 million, and experts believe he may have to provide $10 million to his alleged victim, Giuffre, to settle the case outside of court. As Radar previously reported, Giuffre vows to destroy the royal after his lawyers requested to interview her husband, Robert Giuffre, and her psychologist, Dr. Ludith Lightfoot, in Australia. Andrew’s team plans to ask Dr. Lightfoot to turn over all records of Giuffre’s mental health, prescription medications, and notes about her “alleged emotional and psychological harm” and “theory of false memories.” MEGA The move has received backlash from legal experts and women campaigners who had called their actions “the ultimate form of victim-blaming.” Anna Birley, the co-founder of Reclaim These Streets, said in response, “It should never be a question of how the victim behaves, what she wears, how much she drank, or what she shared with her therapist. Abuse is never ok, and the focus should be on the actions of perpetrator.” View the full article

Published by Radar Online mega A man has come forward to voluntarily testify against Kevin Spacey as part of Anthony Rapp’s lawsuit against the disgraced actor. According to court documents obtained by Radar, Rapp — who is suing Spacey for sexual assault — is asking the judge for help. Recently, a man named Justin Dawes came forward willing to provide his own testimony about a 1988 incident with Spacey. Rapp says he did not issue a subpoena. Rapp says the man gave a deposition under oath where he spilled all the details. Dawes claims he was 16 when he met a 29-year-old Spacey while working at a local theater in Connecticut. mega The actor allegedly invited Dawes and his friend over to watch Chinatown at his apartment. Once they arrived, Dawes claims Spacey was playing gay pornography. He claims Spacey made cocktails and tried to make a “sexual advance on him.” “At one point, Spacey put his hand on Mr. Dawes’ left leg, just above his knee, for 30-45 seconds,” the court docs read. Rapp’s attorney asked Dawes what happened when he was sitting on the couch with Spacey. He testified, “Mostly chatting, and at one point his hand was on my leg. You know, I thought it was mildly uncomfortable. I did not, you know, feel threatened, but I thought it was a kind of, you know, probing of a sexual nature to see how comfortable I was with that. I don’t remember really reacting in any way. I just kind of – just kind of froze, just sort of noticed it and continued on.” Dawes is straight and currently lives in Brazil with his wife and children. “Mr. Dawes repeatedly testified, he came forward because he felt it was the right thing to do, not because he felt pressured in any way,” Rapp said. During his depo, he explained his reasoning for speaking out, “Basically because I felt that it was the right thing to do. I thought that, you know, while this experience I would not characterize as, you know, particularly grievous or traumatic for myself, you know, I think the details of this – this incident may be salient in, you know – I thought the information might be relevant and valuable to this trial, this case.” mega Following the depo, Spacey demanded Dawes name the friend who was with him during the alleged incident. Rapp argues Dawes should not have to name the friend because he volunteered to testify and was not forced. A judge has yet to rule. As Radar previously reported, Rapp is suing Spacey of making a sexual advance on him in 1986 when he was 14 years old. The House of Cardsactor denied all allegations of wrongdoing. As part of his defense, Spacey hired an expert who wrote a report accusing Rapp of creating false memories because he wanted to be a part of the #MeToo movement. mega Kevin Spacey sexual assault Rapp on Towleroad Michael Avenatti Whines About Prison Treatment, Claims Donald Trump’s Book Was The Only One He Was Allowed To Read More Britney Spears’ Tell-All Interview With Oprah Winfrey ‘In The Works,’ Pop Star Will Reportedly Dish On Family Drama More U.S. Supreme Court to hear dispute over football coach’s on-field prayers More OAN/Newsmax Loses Biggest Distributor. ATT’s DirecTV Drops Big-Lie Broadcaster After 3 Months of Customer Outrage Over Reuters’ Report That ATT Secretly Funded OAN Startup. More RuPaul’s Big Openings Gets Stuffed with Seven More Queens on ‘Drag Race’ More BYU Bans Protests In Response to Rainbow School Logo; Clay Aiken Running For Congress Again; France Ends Gay Blood Ban: NEWS ROUNDUP More Load More View the full article

Published by Radar Online mega Michael Avenatti– the disgraced attorney who shot to fame when he represented porn star Stormy Danielsin her lawsuit against Donald Trump – is suing the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) for allegedly mistreating him behind bars. And part of that alleged mistreatment, the 50-year-old claims he was given only one book to read in prison: the former president’s The Art of the Deal. Published in 1987, it’s described as a “part-memoir, part-business advice book” that helped make Trump a household name. Avenatti, however, wanted nothing to do with it, and he feels being allegedly forced to read about the life and work of his nemesis was both cruel and unusual. He is seeking $94 million – $1 million for each day he claims he spent in solitary confinement while in custody at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan. In his filing, Avenatti claims that the federal government is liable for intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, false arrest, and more, going on to cite several reasons. mega According to the lawyer, prison officials limited the contact he could have with friends, family, and other inmates. He also feels he was subjected to particularly harsh conditions that allegedly started from the jump. For example, he points out that he requested to be placed with the general population but was instead locked up in “10 South,” an area he says is known to house some of the most dangerous criminals, including murderers, rapists, terrorists, and the Mexican drug lord, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. Additionally, when he asked for reading material, he claims he was initially denied, only to be provided with The Art of the Deal. Avenatti also says he saw the sky only once during his time in solitary. When it comes to Daniels, though, she has no pity for her former attorney. He’s been charged in a separate case with forging her signature and stealing $300,000 from her book profits. “Can’t wait! Especially since his idiot attorney tried to use my job on a paranormal show and ‘witchcraft’ as reason to dismiss my evidence. Can you say discrimination?” she tweeted last summer. “I’m so excited about finally getting my chance at him.” mega View the full article

Published by OK Magazine MEGA Britney Spears will reportedly sit down with Oprah Winfrey for a tell-all interview sometime this year. According to The Sun, the former talk show host, 67, has been working out a deal to sit down with the pop star, 40, to talk all about what went on during her 13-year conservatorship and the family drama that has played out in the media. MEGA “Britney is deeply hurt and angry others, who claim to love her, keep attempting to tell her narrative when it’s her story to tell,” an insider told the outlet. “She will absolutely be speaking out on her own terms.” BRITNEY SPEARS SEEMINGLY SHADES SISTER JAMIE LYNN SPEARS’ UPCOMING MEMOIR AHEAD OF ‘GOOD MORNING AMERICA’ APPEARANCE “Nothing is locked in yet but things are in play right now,” the source reportedly added of the highly anticipated sit down. “It’s happening this year, maybe sooner than fans think.” “She’s already talked to Oprah about doing a sit down and Britney wants an Oprah interview to happen. Oprah wants it to happen too,” the source reportedly maintained. “It seems like it’s going to work out, so she’s focusing on starting her new life now.” MEGA News of Britney preparing to spill the tea on her family turmoil comes as her sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, took part in a sit down interview of her own, where she opened up about her sister’s alleged “erratic” behavior growing up and the blow out fight they had during the pandemic. BRITNEY SPEARS’ EX-HUSBAND JASON ALEXANDER REPORTEDLY ON PROBATION AFTER PLEADING GUILTY TO MISDEMEANOR STALKING While talking to ABC News’ Juju Chang to promote her upcoming memoir, Things I Should Have Said, the 30-year-old recalled one experience when Britney allegedly pulled out a knife and locked the both of them in a room, insisted she took no part in her sister’s controversial conservatorship and addressed how her dad Jamie Spears‘ alcoholism impacted their family. As OK! previously reported, Britney fired back at the actress’ claims on Twitter, explaining that she has no clue why Jamie Lynn is speaking about her to the press. “She was never around me much 15 years ago at that time,” the Princess of Pop said on the social media platform. “So why are they even talking about that unless she wants to sell a book at my expense?” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Andrew Chung (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal by a Christian former high school football coach who was suspended from his job at a high school in Washington state for refusing to halt his practice of praying at mid-field after games – a case that could expand the religious rights of employees of public institutions. The justices took up an appeal by Joseph Kennedy, who served as an assistant football coach in the city of Bremerton, of a lower court ruling that rejected his claims that the school district’s actions violated his free speech and religious rights under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last year ruled against Kennedy, determining that local officials would have violated the First Amendment’s ban on government establishment of religion if they let Kennedy’s prayers and Christian-infused speeches continue. Kennedy served as an assistant football coach at his alma mater, Bremerton High School, from 2008 to 2015. At issue in the case is whether, as a public employee, Kennedy’s religious devotion alongside players on the football field constituted government speech, which can be regulated under Supreme Court precedents, or a private act, which the Constitution would protect. Kennedy contends that his prayers and speeches were private in nature and not part of his official duties as coach. Bremerton School District disagreed, noting that Kennedy regularly delivered post-game prayers to crowds of players and others for years until officials learned about the religious nature of these sessions in 2015. The school district said such prayers coming from the coach could be coercive, and some parents said their children felt compelled to participate. The dispute began when the school district, wary that Kennedy’s actions could be perceived as an impermissible government endorsement of religion, notified him to stop the prayers while on duty, offering other private locations in the school as alternatives. Kennedy refused and made media appearances publicizing his dispute with the school district, attracting national attention. After repeatedly defying school officials’ demands, he was placed on paid leave from his seasonal contract and did not re-apply as a coach for the subsequent season. “No child attending public school should have to pray to play school sports,” said Rachel Laser, president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a secularism advocacy group representing the school district. The school district, Laser said, followed the law and protected student religious freedom when it stopped Kennedy from holding coercive prayers with players. “No teacher or coach should lose their job for simply expressing their faith while in public,” said Kelly Shackelford, president and CEO of First Liberty Institute, a conservative religious rights group helping to represent Kennedy. “By taking this important case, the Supreme Court can protect the right of every American to engage in private religious expression, including praying in public, without fear of punishment.” The Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, has taken an expansive view of religious rights in several rulings in recent years. Kennedy, who has said he was “not rehired,” sued in federal court in 2016. He sought a court order to be reinstated as coach, alleging religious discrimination and violations of his free speech. Emphasizing the coach’s attempts to draw national attention to his challenge, the 9th Circuit said Kennedy was engaging in “public speech of an overtly religious nature” while on the job as a public employee. The school district would have violated the Constitution “by allowing Kennedy to pray at the conclusion of football games, in the center of the field, with students who felt pressured to join him,” the 9th Circuit added. In arguments in another case last month, conservative Supreme Court justices appeared ready https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-supreme-court-again-tackles-public-funding-religious-schools-2021-12-08 to further expand public funding of religiously based entities in a case involving a Maine tuition assistance program that excludes private schools that promote religious beliefs. (Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Editing by Will Dunham) View the full article

Network MinsinfoIt’s Almost as if ATT Ma Bell Break Up Didn’t Really Bring a Golden Age of Competition and Higher Standard of Living for All. ATT Busted Secretly Bankrolling Radical Right Wing Media. REUTERS Special Report: How AT&T helped build far-right One America News. (Oct, 2021) “AT&T has been a crucial source of funds for OAN, providing tens of millions of dollars in revenue, a Reuters investigation found last year. Ninety percent of OAN’s revenue came from a contract with AT&T-owned television platforms, including DirecTV, according to 2020 sworn testimony by an OAN accountant.” Reuters (Jan, 2022) “The Reuters report drew calls from some liberal groups for AT&T and DirecTV to drop OAN, a favorite of former President Donald Trump, because the network has become a key source of false claims about the election and COVID vaccinations.” Reuters (Jan, 2022) This is quite likely a great direct action success story. Since the October report, customers have voiced they’re pissed. Some dropped accounts, snide remarks across the culture. –MGoff, Editor Published by AFP Former US president Donald Trump regularly called on Chanel Rion of OAN (pictured April 2020) during his press briefings San Francisco (AFP) – Subscription television service DirecTV has decided not to renew its contract with One America News Network (OAN), an ultra-conservative, conspiratorial US channel that backs former US president Donald Trump. “We informed (OAN owner) Herring Networks that, following a routine internal review, we do not plan to enter into a new contract when our current agreement expires,” a spokesman for DirecTV told AFP Friday. The deal is due to expire in April, according to a source familiar with the matter. DirecTV, which is owned by US telecom giant AT&T, did not provide further details for its decision. OAN is one of the new ultra-conservative players in television news that are trying to nibble away at the market share of Fox News. Like Newsmax or Real America’s Voice, they refused to recognize Donald Trump’s defeat in the November 2020 presidential election, instead relaying unsubstantiated conspiracy theories about electoral fraud that were propagated by the former president and his supporters. In mid-November 2020, for instance, OAN presenter Christina Bobb accused the Democratic Party of preparing “a coup” against Trump. Trump himself invited his supporters to switch to OAN and Newsmax, and more and more leading Republican figures are appearing on the channels. OAN saw its audiences climb in the wake of the election, but DirecTV’s decision is a serious blow because it is the channel’s largest distributor, according to US media. OAN did not immediately respond to a request for comment from AFP. A year ago, when Trump supporters stormed Congress in an attempt to stop the certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s victory, OAN and Newsmax denounced — without any supporting evidence — what they called the infiltration of small groups of ultra-leftists into the crowd of Trump loyalists. OAN Newsmax ATT Outrage on Towleroad RuPaul’s Big Openings Gets Stuffed with Seven More Queens on ‘Drag Race’ More BYU Bans Protests In Response to Rainbow School Logo; Clay Aiken Running For Congress Again; France Ends Gay Blood Ban: NEWS ROUNDUP More Prince Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson to retain royal title More Martin Shkreli Barred from Pharma Industry, Fined $64.6 million; Called, ” unrepentant… anticompetitive… at expense of the public health’ More U.S. CDC recommends Americans wear ‘most protective mask you can’ More Jordanian LGBT+ activist finds new home in Australia More ‘Sexual orientation’ removed from Morocco literacy courses More Andrea Jenkins Wins Unanimous Support To Lead Minneapolis City Council As President; At Divided Tense Time, Becomes First Trans Woman To Lead Council More Biden seeks to reshape Fed with historically diverse slate More Load More Directv View the full article

RuPaul’s Drag Race season 14 queen, Angeria. Another week, another crop of Drag Race queens are shoved down our gaping maws while Ru asks if we “like that, piggy?” While Ru’s firehose approach to content has surely exhausted some, I, personally, have transcended Drag Race fatigue into a new state of fresh-eyed wonder. Something about seeing the gals wallow in a giant bowl of Tic Tacs just reminds me of the unhinged episodes of America’s Top Model that initially inspired the satirical edge of this show. (Complete with a faux Ru breakdown on set, which is right out of the Tyra Banks school of reality empire building.) It helps this season boasts a bunch of strong contenders (and everyday, non-Drag Race news is so consistently a bummer). But whatever the reason, I’m enjoying the season 14 gals so far. Like last week, we get new crop of seven girls, a silly photoshoot and another round of talents. The split format continues to pay off, giving each queen a lot more time to shine over the course of the premiere. The talents are a great way to open the season, but everyone is getting a little tired of queens passing off lip syncing as a talent here (including the judges). It’s not that it doesn’t require skill, but we wouldn’t accept “wearing a wig” or “putting on lashes” as a talent on this show either. If you’re gonna sync, you better give us Aja levels of stunts to go with it. It’s not that it [Lipsyn] doesn’t require skill, but we wouldn’t accept “wearing a wig” or “putting on lashes” as a talent on this show either. If you’re gonna sync, you better give us Aja levels of stunts… Or, lip sync to your own original song. Last week, that strategy snagged Kornbread the win. This week, Atlanta’s own Angeria found similar success. Both tracks are bangers and nail the assignment of introducing the queens to the judges (and audience). However, not every gal has access to a producer (or even Garageband). Participating in Drag Race already requires famously exorbitant costs. Adding another barrier to access is only going to keep some more talented queens from the spotlight. But let’s still take a moment to recognize Angeria’s win. The track is the usual electronic nonsense, but it’s fun and memorable. (Check!) And Angeria is a complete superstar. Her talent number had a wig reveal, a costume change and a FOG MACHINE. All bells and whistles aside, the greatest part with Angeria’s attitude and commitment. The other lip syncers found mixed results. Pint-sized, Latina beauty Jorgeous brought the energy, precision and sex appeal. As the most recognizable queen in this batch, she’s clearly established as a frontrunner. On the mainstage, she looks incredible and has every movement refined. Jasmine Kennedie, a young dancing diva, earns that title with a routine that would give an Olympian a run for their cardio. Fellow dancer, Lady Camden classes things up with a hybrid drag-ballet performance that could’ve come straight out of a Save the Last Dance reboot. Daya Betty has a less successful sync. A cute little number to a P!nk track, it’s got a couple of moments, but it’s hardly the first impression anyone would want to make. It would be cute in a club, but on the main stage, it feels hopelessly small-scale. RuPaul’s Drag Race queen Maddy Morphosis gets ahead of her lackluster talent performance with a memorable runway. Maddy Morphosis also fails to stick the landing. She plays live blues guitar, but doesn’t cheat to the camera/judges to show off her greatest trick (playing with her tongue). Notably, Maddy is Drag Race‘s first cis, straight queen. I’m sure the famously toxic Drag Race fandom will handle this well! I myself am choosing to recognize I’m, at best, three degrees removed from the drag community, and therefore I’m probably not best suited to have an opinion surrounding who does and doesn’t belong. But that’s jut me! For what Maddy lacks in showmanship, she makes up for with at least some skill (and later on the runway). The same can’t be said for DeJa Skye, a plus-sized camp queen from Northern California. Her talent is a cheerleading lesson, but it’s delivered too sincerely and lacked any bite. DeJa is a cheer choreographer, but as the old adage implies, just because she can teach don’t mean she can do. Not even a stunning runway is enough to save DeJa from the bottom two. She joins Daya Betty, a rock and roller from Crystal Methyd’s drag family whose own fate is sealed when she walks the runway with her dress ripped open in the back. They lip sync for their lives to “Fallin'” by this week’s guest judge, Alicia Keys. Suddenly, DeJa transforms from a friendly, campy performer to a sexy, intense chanteuse. She is on every beat and selling every moment. Daya is no match, and Ru sends the MidWest queen home to the house of Methyd. A few front runners are already Ru-vealing themselves. Take a look at our first impressions of these new queens in the rankings below, and leave yours in the comments! You can’t deny Angeria. That song was so stupid, but so catchy. Everyone who speaks with Angeria seems to love her, including Ru. Her personality is at once disarming and absolutely irresistible. She looked great in every lewk tonight. There’s something about her nose contour that makes her already wide-set eyes look even further apart. It gives Angeria a mesmerizing, almost alien quality. I cannot get enough.Michelle got it right with Jorgeous. She is so fully present in every moment, every movement is in character. She has a very clear picture of who Jorgeous is, and she delivers it flawlessly. She’s a fierce queen, clearly, but she’ll be tested in the improv, branding and acting challenges.Jasmine Kennedie may not have won this week, but she made a statement. Ru was beguiled with her glam, vintage-inspired runway. You know Ru can’t resist a young fashion queen wise beyond her years. Plus, Jasmine has the dancing chops to carry choreo. She is giving me slight Jan vibes with her eagerness, but at least she’s not singing … for now.The editors gave us a solid bait and switch with Lady Camden this week. Sure, ballet could be “boring,” but it’s a good sign Camden knew enough to put a fresh spin on her pirouette. Like Jorgeous, Camden has a point-of-view (Spice Girl realness), which we saw on display with the ’90s tinge to her candy-coated arrival lewk and the delightful peacock presentation on the runway.It’s not often a bottom two can still escape the bottom of the rankings, but DeJa Skye really showed out in that lip sync. For a queen that arrived clearly serving camp, it was refreshing to see such luscious luxury on the runway later. If she can bring the attitude and precision she showed in the lip sync next week, she can bounce back from this.Based on her Instagram, Maddy Morphosis has got some interesting potential. She’s capable of producing some compelling art, but I struggle to see the sizzle that makes a star. The beheaded runway presentation wasn’t the most original, but it was one of the best executed (pun intended) I’ve seen. Still, it was all gimmick. Maddy kept up with the repartee in the werk room, which gives me hope it’s just somme day-one nerves to shake.The one-two punch of a talent flop and wardrobe malfunction was the death sentence for Daya Betty. From the Haus of Crystal Methyd, this kooky kween seemed to have a no good, very bad day. If ever a queen could earn their way back for another shot, I’d be interested to see what Daya could do with a fresh start. Her arrival outfit showed promise, her lip sync was fun and, had it not ripped, it would have been solid runway. None of it would have made an impression like Angeria, Jorgeous or Jasmine did, but she at least could have stayed to slay another day.What did you think of the second batch of queens? Catch up on our RuPaul’s Drag Race coverage. RuPaul’s Big Openings Gets Stuffed with Seven More Queens on ‘Drag Race’ Bobby Hankinson January 15, 2022 No Comments RuPaul’s Drag Race season 14 queen, Angeria. Another week, another crop of Drag Race queens are shoved down our gaping maws while Ru asks if we … Read More RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars: Side Hustlers’ Ball [RECAP and RANKINGS] Bobby Hankinson July 3, 2021 No Comments RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars queens want to know: Are you Crossfitting for Christ or do you want the devil’s dadbod? The first true gag … Read More RuPaul All Stars 6 Premiere: Variety Extravaganza, Blue Ball and a New Viewing Experience [RECAP and RANKINGS] Bobby Hankinson June 25, 2021 No Comments Yara Sofia is an agent of chaos on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars premiere. RuPaul All Stars 6 is back, and, no, there’s no Yvie Oddly, … Read More RuPaul’s Drag Race Wins Best Cast, Competition and, of course, Host at Unscripted MTV Awards 2021 Towleroad May 18, 2021 No Comments Published by BANG Showbiz ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ was the big winner at the inaugural MTV Movie & TV Awards: Unscripted. The biggest shows in unscripted reality … Read More ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 13’ Crowns Its Queen [RECAP] Bobby Hankinson April 24, 2021 No Comments Drag Race Season 13 is a wrap Drag Race Season 13 — Tributes and Scale: The season of RuPaul’s Drag Race we all sort of felt … Read More RuPaul’s Drag Race: Four Tops? Now That’s What I Call A Party [RECAP and RANKINGS] Bobby Hankinson April 10, 2021 No Comments RuPaul’s Drag Race is usually good at making sure its finale features distinct performance styles, but this season’s final crop of queens feels particularly strong. … Read More View the full article

Brigham Young University BYU bans protestsBYU Bans Y Mountain Protests After Pro-LGBTQ Demonstration Brigham Young University (BYU) announced a ban on protest actions on the famous Y Mountain landmark overlooking the school. The move comes one year after pro-LGBTQ activists lit the concrete Y on the mountain in rainbow colors to coincide with an on-campus action in support of the university’s LGBTQ students. The announcement came as part of a wider revision of the school’s demonstration policy released last month that prohibits protest actions from occurring “within university buildings, near places where minors and other vulnerable populations are present … and locations where safety is at risk, including university-owned portions of Y Mountain.” The new policy doesn’t mention last year’s LGBTQ demonstration on the mountain. It does, however, outline “content standards” for on-campus demonstrations. Under those standards, protests “must not seriously and adversely affect the university mission or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” if seeking school approval. It further specifies that on-campus actions cannot “contradict or oppose” Mormon doctrine or policy, “deliberately attack or deride” the Church or its leaders or violate the Church’s honor code. French Health Minister Oliver Véran highlighted the news on Twitter, saying that blood donation screening surveys will no longer include references to sexual orientation beginning in March. According to Le Parisien, people wishing to donate blood will be required to report if they are being treated for HIV or HIV prevention in addition to recent sexual activity and drug use. “We are ending an inequality that was no longer justified,” said Véran. France now joins Italy, Hungary and Spain as a European nation that has lifted such a ban dating back to the early 1980s and the AIDS epidemic. Clay Aiken Announces Second Congressional Run Former “American Idol” star Clay Aiken is making another run at the U.S. House of Representatives in North Carolina, announcing his second bid to become the first out gay congressperson in the state’s history on Monday. Aiken previously ran for the position in 2014, securing the Democratic nomination before ultimately falling to Rep. Renee Ellmers. His recognition as a reality TV and music industry figure have allowed him to remain active in LGBTQ advocacy in his home state, and redistricting puts him at a better chance of succeeding should he emerge from a crowded primary field. The Raleigh native stated that rising instances of homophobia and racism in North Carolina were a motivating factor for giving politics another shot. “Just think how excited these guys are going to be when we elect the South’s first gay congressman,” Aiken said in his first campaign video. The guys he refers to are Rep. Madison Cawthorn and North Carolina Lt. Governor Mark Robinson, whose pictures appear in the background of the video along with rainbow Pride flags. Aiken called Cawthorn a “white nationalist” and Robinson a “hateful homophobe” in the video. “If the loudest and most hateful voices think they’re going to speak for us, just tell them I’m warming up the old vocal chords,” Aiken added. Aiken joins seven other Democrats running in the primary for the 6th Congressional District seat held by retiring Rep. David Price, which will be held in May. According to local news outlet WRAL, the winner of the Democratic primary is all but guaranteed to win the seat after districts were redrawn following the 2020 Census. BYU Bans Protests: Previously on Towleroad BYU Bans Protests In Response to Rainbow School Logo; Clay Aiken Running For Congress Again; France Ends Gay Blood Ban: NEWS ROUNDUP Brian Bell January 15, 2022 Read More Andrea Jenkins Wins Unanimous Support To Lead Minneapolis City Council As President; At Divided Tense Time, Becomes First Trans Woman To Lead Council Brian Bell January 14, 2022 Read More Canada Conversion Therapy Ban Goes Into Effect; European Court Declines Gay Marriage Cake Case; New Study on Blood Donations By Gay Men Underway: NEWS Brian Bell January 10, 2022 Read More Man Still Has To Register As A Sex Offender For Consensual Gay Sex in 2001. ACLU Sues South Carolina. Brian Bell January 5, 2022 Read More Monica Lewinsky Now Relates To Britney; Says Only 1 Of Us ‘Made a Mistake’; Overall ‘Happy People Are Making Amends For Their Treatment Of Women’ Towleroad September 3, 2021 Read More Trump Hitler Connections. Report that Trump told Chief of Staff that Hitler ‘did a lot of good things,’ Is One Of Too Many. Towleroad July 13, 2021 Read More Photo courtesy of Pastelitodepapa/Creative Commons View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Prince Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson will retain her royal title. Sarah has continued to use the title Sarah, Duchess of York, despite her 1996 divorce from Andrew and although his military titles and royal patronages have been returned to the Queen, there are no plans for Sarah to stop being referred to as a duchess. A source told The Daily Mail’s Eden Confidential column: “That has been her title since the divorce and that is how it will stay. “Andrew is still the Duke of York, so it is not an issue.” It was revealed this week that the 61-year-old prince will no longer use ‘His Royal Highness’ in an official capacity and his roles will be given to other members of the royal family. Buckingham Palace said in a statement: “With the Queen’s approval and agreement, the Duke of York’s military affiliations and Royal patronages have been returned to the Queen. “The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen.” This comes after it was confirmed that Prince Andrew will face a civil case in the US over allegations he sexually assaulted a woman when she was 17. A federal court judge in New York City ruled that a lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre can move forward. Giuffre has accused convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein – who died by suicide in August 2019 – and his one-time girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell of arranging and forcing her into having sex with Prince Andrew in 2001, when she was 17. Giuffre claims her alleged abuse at the hands of the pair involved being lent out to powerful men. In December, Maxwell was convicted by a jury in US federal court on five sex trafficking-related counts, which carry a potential custodial sentence of up to 65 years’ imprisonment. Andrew has repeatedly denied Giuffre’s allegations and his legal team recently argued to get her lawsuit dismissed, citing a 2009 deal and $500,000 settlement she agreed with Epstein. However, the judge in New York recently ruled that the case could continue. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Diane Bartz and Jonathan Stempel WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A U.S. judge on Friday barred Martin Shkreli from the pharmaceutical industry for life and ordered him to pay $64.6 million after he famously raised the price of the drug Daraprim and fought to block generic competitors. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in Manhattan ruled after a trial where the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and seven states had accused Shkreli, the founder of Vyera Pharmaceuticals, of using illegal tactics to keep Daraprim rivals out of the market. Shkreli drew notoriety in 2015 after hiking Daraprim’s price overnight to $750 per tablet from $17.50. The drug treats toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that threatens people with weakened immune systems. In a 130-page decision, Cote faulted Shkreli for creating two companies, Vyera and Retrophin Inc, designed to monopolize drugs so he could profit “on the backs” of patients, doctors and distributors. She said the Daraprim scheme was “particularly heartless and coercive,” and a lifetime industry ban was needed because of the “real danger” that Shkreli could become a repeat offender. “Shkreli’s anticompetitive conduct at the expense of the public health was flagrant and reckless,” the judge wrote. “He is unrepentant. Barring him from the opportunity to repeat that conduct is nothing if not in the interest of justice.” After the ruling, FTC Chair Lina Khan tweeted the decision, calling it a “just outcome.” Shkreli’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Shkreli is serving a seven-year prison sentence for securities fraud. He did not attend the trial held last month. Vyera was founded in 2014 as Turing Pharmaceuticals, and acquired Daraprim from Impax Laboratories Inc in 2015. Regulators accused Vyera of protecting its dominance of Daraprim by ensuring that generic drugmakers could not obtain samples for cheaper versions, and keeping potential rivals from buying a key ingredient. The seven states joining the FTC case included California, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. (Reporting by Diane Bartz and Jonathan Stempel; editing by Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by Reuters By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) late on Friday revised its guidance for Americans on wearing masks, recommending wearing “the most protective mask you can,” although the agency stopped short of calling for nationwide N95 usage. The CDC clarified in its revised website “that people can choose respirators such as N95s and KN95s, including removing concerns related to supply shortages for N95s.” It added that Americans should “wear the most protective mask you can that fits well and that you will wear consistently.” The CDC added “masking is a critical public health tool to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and it is important to remember that any mask is better than no mask.” The revised recommendations “reflect the science on masking, including what we have learned in the past two years,” the CDC added. The health agency added that “while all masks and respirators provide some level of protection, properly fitted respirators provide the highest level of protection.” COVID-19 cases have surged and more Americans have been opting for higher-grade protection. N95 masks that are worn correctly will filter out at least 95% of particulate matter in the air, preventing anything larger than 0.3 micron from passing through. The United States reported 1.35 million new coronavirus infections on Monday, shattering the global record for daily cases in any one country. Omicron is now estimated to account for 98.3% of total new cases circulating in the country, the CDC said. Masks remain polarizing in the United States. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, this week again urged citizens to wear masks and noted that about one-third of Americans report they do not wear a mask at all. Many Republican-leaning states have no mask requirements while some liberal Democratic-controlled states like California have reimposed indoor mask mandates. Senator Bernie Sanders reintroduced a bill dubbed the Masks for All Act on Wednesday which would send each person in the United States a pack of three N95 masks. In late July, the CDC reversed course and said fully vaccinated Americans should wear masks in indoor public places in regions where the coronavirus is spreading rapidly. The CDC says currently 99.5% of U.S. counties have high community spread and are covered by the mask recommendation. In May, the CDC had announced that fully vaccinated people could shed their face coverings as COVID-19 was on the decline. (Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington; Additional reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; Editing by David Gregorio and Matthew Lewis) View the full article

Published by Al-Araby A Jordanian LGBT+ activist has reached Australia after an 18-month ordeal that saw them become the subject of arrest warrants and missing person notices. AlShaima Omama AlZubi, who identifies as a lesbian and non-binary, arrived in Australia on 1 January on a humanitarian visa. According to an Amnesty International report, AlZubi fled their family in Jordan for Turkey in July 2020. Alzubi’s family is powerful and has influence across the Middle East, Amnesty said, with some relatives working for the Jordanian government. While in Turkey, AlZubi was the subject of multiple Interpol notices. The… Read More View the full article

Published by Al-Araby Morocco’s Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs fired the head of the ministry’s literacy department over the use of the term “sexual orientation” in learning materials used by mosques, according to local media reports. The dismissal related to the new second grade curriculum, which included a passage from a book saying: “Equality implies that people are treated equally without discrimination regardless of ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.” After an investigation, Minister of Islamic affairs Ahmed al-Tawfiq decided to fire the person in charge for allegedly promoting homosexua… Read More View the full article

Andrea JenkinsJenkins Makes History Again Minneapolis City Council member Andrea Jenkins made history on Monday, becoming the first out transgender city council president in American history. Jenkins was elected unanimously by her fellow council members after holding the council’s vice president post. She was the first out Black trans woman elected to public office in the US when she joined the Minneapolis City Council in 2017. “I hope that it serves as inspiration for other trans and gender non-conforming people,” Jenkins told NBC News. “My vision for this council and for the city of Minneapolis is that we come together and begin the really significant work of healing after our city has been rocked by the murder of George Floyd and so many other Black and brown people who have lost their lives at the hands of the state.” “It’s no secret that the previous council ended up being very factionalized and she was able to be pretty successful in bringing everybody to the table,” newly elected city council member Elliott Payne told Axios. “I’m going to work toward getting to ‘yes’ – not staying mired in respective, abstinent positions,” Jenkins told Axios. “I am going to keep listening, keep talking. I think we can get there. We can bridge those divides.” She went on. “The attacks on trans and gender non-conforming people are simply a reaction to the fact that this community … is beginning to really make inroads in our society and show up in spaces where we’re not expected to be,” she told NBC News. “That’s going to continue, we are not going away, we are not retreating into the background and we cannot be written out of public life.” Andrea Jenkins: Previously on Towleroad Andrea Jenkins Wins Unanimous Support To Become Minneapolis City Council President; At A Divided, Tense Moment, She’s First Trans Woman to do so. Brian Bell January 14, 2022 Read More Indian Artist/Model Takes Miss Trans Global Pageant; Delaware LGBTQ Bar Fire Relief; Palm Springs Gets First Trans Mayor State: GOOD VIBES Brian Bell December 14, 2021 Read More Netflix Protest Driven As Much By Chappelle Content As By CEO Fumbling Trans Efforts To Save Netflix From Itself Brian Bell October 21, 2021 Read More Jamie Lee Curtis Was Surprised, But Looking Back Now Sees Signs Her Daughter With Christopher Guest Was Trans Towleroad October 21, 2021 Read More Repeated Misgendering Of Employees On Purpose is a Human Rights Violation in Canada. ‘Like a Name, Pronouns are… part of a Person’s Identity’ Brian Bell October 5, 2021 Read More First Transgender History Month Established in San Francisco; Compton’s Cafeteria Riots Memorialized Brian Bell September 1, 2021 Read More Photo courtesy of Tony Webster/Creative Commons View the full article

Published by Reuters By Andrea Shalal and Ann Saphir WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday nominated former Federal Reserve Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin for the Fed’s key regulatory post and two Black economists – Lisa Cook and Philip Jefferson – to serve on its board in what would represent a landmark demographic overhaul of the world’s most powerful central bank. The appointments – if confirmed by the Senate – would fill out the ranks of a seven-member panel that wields tremendous influence over the world’s largest economy, and would make the Fed’s top leadership the most diverse by race and gender in its 108-year history. The appointments, which follow Biden’s earlier nominations of Jerome Powell for a second four-year term as Fed chair and Governor Lael Brainard as vice chair, come as Biden’s own plans to reboot the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic have run into an unexpected spike in inflation. It presents an opportunity for him to leave a lasting imprint on a body that sets economic policies – particularly about interest rates – that reverberate across the globe. “We are at a moment of historic economic progress alongside unique economic challenges as we work to drive our recovery forward,” Biden said in a statement. “This is a moment that calls for sound, independent leadership from the Board of Governors at the Federal Reserve. That is why I am proud to nominate Sarah Bloom Raskin, Lisa Cook, and Philip Jefferson, who will bring a breadth of knowledge, experience and expertise to the Board of Governors.” The nominations drew immediate fire from the top Republican member of the Senate Banking Committee, signaling a potentially rocky, and partisan, nomination process ahead in a legislative body that Democrats control only by virtue of Vice President Kamala Harris’ dual role as president of the Senate. “I have serious concerns” about Raskin, Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania said in statement, adding he believes she would try to keep banks from lending to oil and gas companies and otherwise stray from the two congressional mandates that steer the Fed’s core mission – maximum employment and price stability. Toomey and other Republicans repeatedly queried Brainard, nominated to the Fed’s No. 2 role, about her support for climate risk research during her nomination hearing on Thursday https://www.reuters.com/world/us/feds-most-important-task-is-control-inflation-brainard-says-2022-01-13. He also signaled skepticism toward Cook and Jefferson, saying he will “closely examine” whether they have “the necessary experience, judgment, and policy views to serve as Fed Governors.” MORE DIVERSE FED BOARD Cook, a professor of economics and international relations at Michigan State University, would be the first Black woman to serve as a Fed governor. Jefferson, a professor and senior administrator at Davidson College in North Carolina, would be only the fourth Black man to sit on the panel and the first in more than 15 years. Biden’s picks would mean the seven-member Board of Governors would include four women, also a first. Currently, the Fed’s board has only five members, all white, although that tally will fall to four – two men and two women – after Vice Chair Richard Clarida leaves the board on Friday as previously announced. “It’s clearly a changing of the guard,” said Larry Katz, a professor at Harvard University. This is a “path-breaking new set of nominees who will bring important perspectives and representation to the board.” Former Fed Governor Elizabeth Duke, who served with Raskin, told Reuters that Biden’s nominees will “inspire more and more diverse people to go into economics and to study the practice of economics.” The effort to make the Fed look more like America comes at a critical time. Inflation is at its highest level in decades. Unemployment is down, but U.S. employers have 3.6 million fewer workers on their payrolls than they did before the coronavirus pandemic. The Fed is debating how fast and how far to raise interest rates and otherwise tighten monetary policy to rein in inflation without short-circuiting the labor market. Its current leadership has already signaled readiness to start raising rates as early as March, dialing back from an ultra-accommodative footing that could test financial markets and influence the pace of recovery during an election year in which control of Congress is on the line. Leading the pivot is Powell, who appeared before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday for his nomination hearing https://www.reuters.com/business/feds-powell-heads-hill-hearing-with-inflation-focus-2022-01-11. Biden nominated Brainard to replace Clarida as the central bank’s vice chair. Progressives had favored more diverse picks to lead the Fed; the slate Biden put forward on Thursday helps meet that demand. Raskin, who spent four years as a Fed governor before being tapped as a deputy Treasury secretary from 2014 to 2017, is expected to bring tougher oversight to bear on Wall Street than the Fed’s previous vice chair of supervision, Randal Quarles, who left the Fed at the end of last year. Cook has written extensively about the economic consequences of racial disparities and gender inequality, and growing up lived through the violence of school desegregation in the U.S. South. Jefferson has written extensively on wages, poverty and income distribution. Kevin Hassett, who chaired the Council of Economic Advisers under former President Donald Trump, said Jefferson was an “incredibly smart economist” and serious academic who should be confirmed by the Senate quickly. “He’s the kind of honorable, serious person the Federal Reserve should have.” (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Dan Burns, Leslie Adler and Paul Simao) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Emilio Parodi MILAN (Reuters) – Italy will use the nation’s sewage to predict future coronavirus spreads and to alert authorities to rising cases and new variants before they appear in testing and hospitals, a senior official said, announcing a project to be launched in coming months. The new tool will be rolled out as governments look for new ways to track the virus to inform public health policy and to decide whether they have to take unpopular measures like restrictions that disrupt people’s lives and economies. It could also be useful amid concerns about shortages of testing kits and labs being overwhelmed as the more infectious Omicron variant sweeps the world. Like many other countries, Italy is seeing surging https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/countries-and-territories/italy cases. The tool will provide an early warning for future waves of infection and detect the presence and incidence of different variants, the co-head of wastewater monitoring at the National Health Institute (ISS), Giuseppina La Rosa, told Reuters this week. She said she believes it will be ready in two or three months at the most. Many countries, including Canada and the Netherlands have been monitoring coronavirus in wastewater since early on in the pandemic. The Global Water Pathogen Project keeps a database, called COVIDPoops19, of global data. The challenge with developing predictive models of wastewater is that they have to take into account so many variables, including for example rainfall altering the content of the waste water, Luca Lucentini, director of Water Quality at the ISS, told Reuters. “The great advantage of sewage monitoring is that it photographs the base of the pyramid, the whole population, whereas epidemiological surveillance covers those who are swabbed, that is only the top”, La Rosa said. The programme has 166 sampling points throughout Italy and 60 laboratories. Cities with more than 150,000 inhabitants are sampled twice a week, and towns of 50,000 inhabitants or more once a week. “When these models are ready in a short time, however, we will be able to intercept the trend in advance and to provide useful data for deciding on health policy measures to be taken,” La Rosa added. This type of environmental screening may also identify less common variants that may escape surveillance through swabs, she said. “Another thing we will definitely do is to go and re-screen the older samples we have in the archive, to see for example when Omicron actually arrived in Italy,” La Rosa added. In 2020 the ISS showed the presence of the coronavirus in the wastewater of Milan and Turin in December 2019, which was around the time that China first alerted the world to the virus and which showed a much earlier arrival in Italy than previously thought. (Reporting by Emilio Parodi; Editing by Josephine Mason and Frances Kerry) View the full article

Published by Radar Online MEGA Sinead O’Connor has been hospitalized after posting an alarming message to social media nearly one week after her son Shane passed away from a suspected suicide. According to a number of posts to the 55-year-old Irish singer’s Twitter, her 17-year-old son Shane O’Connor – who Sinead shared custody of with Irish folk singer Dónal Lunny – was found dead on January 7 after reportedly escaping from an Irish hospital where he was being kept on suicide watch. MEGA “My beautiful son, Nevi’im Nesta Ali Shane O’Connor, the very light of my life, decided to end his earthly struggle today and is now with God,” Sinead posted last Friday. “May he rest in peace and may no one follow his example. My baby. I love you so much. Please be at peace.” Then, in a series of progressively more distressing tweets, the Nothing Compares 2 U singer started calling herself a “f–k up” and a “s–t person” before claiming she was going to “follow” her son. “I’ve decided to follow my son. There is no point living without him. Everything I touch, I ruin. I only stayed for him. And now he’s gone,” she tweeted yesterday. “I’ve destroyed my family. My kids don’t want to know me. I am a s–t person. And you all only think I’m nice because I can sing. I’m not.” But this alarming tweet caught the attention of her fans, friends and family, because someone evidently called the police to check on the mourning singer, who was then subsequently hospitalized for her own wellbeing and her own apparent threats of suicide. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I am with cops now on way to hospital. I’m sorry I upset everyone. I am lost without my kid and I hate myself. Hospital will help a while. But I’m going to find Shane. This is just a delay,” she revealed. Shane’s death was officially confirmed by police on January 7. “Following the recovery of a body in the Bray area of Wicklow on Friday, 7th January 2022, a Missing Person Appeal in respect of Shane O’Connor, 17 years, has been stood down,” a spokesperson said last Friday. MEGA View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Johnny Knoxville nearly put his penis “out of commission”. The 50-year-old ‘Jackass Forever’ star – who is gearing up for the delayed release of the fourth big screen installment in the daredevil franchise – recalled how he once injured his “gym dog” while doing a stunt which saw him trying to flip a motorcycle, and left him with a catheter for more than three years. He told Variety: “I broke my gym dog a number of years ago. That’s been well documented. So much has been said about so little. “The doctor said a couple centimetres down and it would’ve been out of commission.” However, the ‘Bad Grandpa’ star joked the birth of his two kids – son, Rocko, 12 and a daughter Arlo, 10, with his wife film director Naomi Nelson – proves everything is in “working order” now. Johnny quipped: “But I’ve had two children since then, so it’s in great working order. That’s too much information.” Johnny – who also has daughter Madison, 25, with his ex-wife Melanie Cates – has experienced multiple other injuries while filming on ‘Jackass’ – which initially launched on MTV in 2000 before moving to the big screen – including a broken wrist, broken rib, concussion and a brain haemorrhage. The stunt man – whose only stunt in the whole movie features in the trailer and sees a bull knock him over – revealed his family don’t approve of his extreme behaviour. He said: “My family doesn’t like me doing this type of thing. This is most wicked bull hit I’ve ever taken.” Johnny has opted to take a back seat this time round and let the next generation take over, such as Zach Holmes, Rachel Wolfson and Eric Manaka. He explained: “Those were big, and could end as badly or worse. I’ve done enough. I don’t have anything to prove. I have kids to raise. That’s the most important thing.” The original show also featured the likes of skateboarder Bam Margera, Steve-O and many others, and Johnny admitted it was “heartbreaking” working on a film without the late Ryan Dunn, who died aged 34 in 2011. He added: “It was a brutal loss for everyone and something that sticks with me and all of us to this day. My kids don’t know Ryan, and it breaks my heart.” Meanwhile, Bam also doesn’t feature due to personal issues, as Johnny said: “We all love Bam. He’s our brother, you know? You just hope that he takes it upon himself to get the help that he needs, because we all care about him a lot.” View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Madonna may have just dropped a major hint about her much-delayed and highly anticipated biopic. Following a heavily documented dinner and night out with a hodgepodge of Hollywood stars – including Kanye West, Julia Fox, Antonio Brown, Floyd Mayweather, The Game and Evan Ross – the 63-year-old music icon suggested that Ye’s new girlfriend is in the running to play her in her upcoming autobiographical movie. Madge shared dynamic group photos of the unlikely evening in a several-slide Instagram post on Thursday night, but it was her decision to make a solo shot with Julia the leading image that made fans’ heads spin. “Went to dinner with Julia to talk about my movie,” the Queen of Pop captioned the steamy shot, which showed the ladies all over each other while spread out on a beige sofa at Los Angeles hotspot Delilah. “And some other folks showed up,” she cheekily added. Mega Channeling her Like A Virgin roots, Madonna was in a white long-sleeved prairie-style dress, which she paired with black fishnet stockings. She completed her look with an artsy red harness and edgy black combat boots. For her part, the Uncut Gems star opted for a black long-sleeved leather crop top and matching low-rise pants. It’s evident that the 31-year-old actress bears a strong resemblance to Madonna (last name Ciccone), particularly during the star’s younger years when she rocked her natural brunette hair. Ciccone is set to write and direct the upcoming movie alongside Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody. It’s not yet clear how many versions/ages of Madge will be covered in her biopic, but the names of several actresses have been floating around since 2020. The first person fans thought might be involved in the project is Ozark‘s Julia Garner. Then last January, rumors began to circulate that the 27-year-old Netflix star was up against 26-year-old Little Women actress Florence Pugh. Mega “Realistically, there are only a couple of people in town who could pull this role off,” an insider dished at the time. “The bosses who are helping put the movie together want Florence and nobody doubts that she could be amazing.” “On the other hand, fans and the press have already weighed in and, from that perspective, Julia is their frontrunner because she is such a dead ringer for early-career Madonna,” added the source, making sure to note that “the final decision will be Madonna’s alone, since she’s directing and it’s her story.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Joseph Ax (Reuters) -The Ohio Supreme Court on Friday struck down the state’s new congressional map for illegally favoring Republicans over Democrats and ordered lawmakers to redraw the lines. The decision could have a significant impact on the battle for control of Congress in this year’s midterm elections. Electoral analysts had said the Republican-backed map would ensure the party won at least 12, and perhaps 13, of the state’s 15 congressional seats, in part by splitting Cincinnati’s county into multiple districts to dilute Democratic voting power there. In a 4-3 decision, the state’s high court found that the map violated new provisions in the Ohio Constitution that were approved by voters in 2018, including language that prohibits any map that “favors or disfavors a political party or its incumbents.” “When the dealer stacks the deck in advance, the house usually wins,” Justice Michael Donnelly wrote for the majority. “That perhaps explains how a party that generally musters no more than 55 percent of the statewide popular vote is positioned to reliably win anywhere from 75 percent to 80 percent of the seats in the Ohio congressional delegation.” The court’s three Democrats were joined in the majority by Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor, a Republican. Three Republican justices dissented from the decision, arguing that the court was encroaching on the authority of the legislature. (Reporting by Joseph Ax, Editing by Franklin Paul and Alistair Bell) View the full article

Published by AFP Ukrainian troops take part in joint exercises with the United States and other NATO countries near Lviv in September 2021 Washington (AFP) – Russia has put in place operatives trained in explosives to carry out a “false-flag” operation to create a pretext to invade Ukraine, US officials alleged Friday. The United States released intelligence findings the day after National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that Russia, which has amassed tens of thousands of troops on the Ukrainian border, was “laying the groundwork to have the option of fabricating a pretext for an invasion.” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said US intelligence believed Russia could begin the operations “several weeks” before a military invasion, which could start between mid-January and mid-February. “We have information that indicates Russia has already prepositioned a group of operatives to conduct a false-flag operation in eastern Ukraine,” Psaki told reporters. “The operatives are trained in urban warfare and in using explosives to carry out acts of sabotage against Russia’s own proxy forces.” Russia quickly denied the account, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov calling the US statements “unfounded.” But Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the intelligence was “very credible” and that the classification had been downgraded to allow its release to the public. He said that Russian operatives could include intelligence agents, military elements and other security services. “They often hybridize their personnel to such a degree that the lines are not necessarily really clear,” Kirby told reporters. Rise in disinformation The allegations come as Ukraine was hit by a major cyberattack, which led NATO to vow to step up cooperation with Kyiv for online security. Psaki said the United States was “concerned” by the attack, but stopped short of blaming Russia, saying there was not yet a finding on who was to blame. Psaki said Russia, alongside its purported false-flag preparations, had ramped up a disinformation campaign on social media, including posts that accuse Ukraine of rights violations and the West of provoking tensions. “Our information also indicates that Russian influence actors are already starting to fabricate Ukrainian provocations in state and social media to justify a Russian intervention and sow divisions in Ukraine,” she said. The United States has repeatedly accused Russia of spreading conspiracies and disinformation on social media. Psaki said Russian-language justifications for Moscow’s narratives on Ukraine on social media have jumped by 200 percent in December to nearly 3,500 posts per day. Sullivan, in his briefing to reporters, said Russia had used similar tactics in 2014 when it seized Crimea and backed an ongoing insurgency in eastern Ukraine. “We saw this playbook in 2014. They are preparing this playbook again,” Sullivan said. The United States released the findings on the alleged false-flag plans after a week of talks with Russia to defuse tensions. Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied plans to invade Ukraine but has demanded security guarantees from the West, including promises not to expand NATO eastward. Sullivan said Thursday that the United States preferred diplomacy but was prepared to “defend” allies and to impose major economic costs on Russia if it invades. Russia stepped up its pressure on Ukraine in 2014 after an uprising toppled a government that had rejected pressure to move the country closer to the West. More than 13,000 people have since died in the pro-Russian insurgency in eastern Ukraine. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Tim Cocks JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -A Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine booster shot is 85% effective in protecting against being hospitalised by the Omicron variant for 1-2 months after it is received, the head of South Africa’s Medical Research Council (SAMRC) said on Friday. Glenda Gray presented the findings of a SAMRC study at a South African health ministry briefing on the COVID-19 fourth wave, which has been driven by the new variant. “We saw an 85% vaccine effectiveness and we saw that this kind of vaccine effectiveness is maintained for up to two months,” she said. “We are very happy to report very high levels of vaccine effectiveness against Omicron.” The study involved 477,234 healthcare workers, all of them vaccinated with the J&J shot, of whom 236,000 — roughly half — had received the J&J booster shot. It looked at hospitalisations among those healthcare workers who had been infected during the fourth wave, and found that the booster shot reduced hospitalisations by 63% in the first two weeks after the booster, going up to 85% after that for between one and two months. “This is the world’s first evidence of vaccine effectiveness (against Omicron) using the J&J vaccine,” Gray said. The South African authorities have thus far maintained a preference for the Pfizer vaccine — they have administered 21 million doses, three times as many as the roughly 7 million J&J vaccine doses. But the J&J shot is considered logistically much more preferable because it is a single dose regimen, which is easier to administer in remote rural areas, where follow ups can be difficult. The data supported already strong global evidence that Omicron can evade vaccine protection when it comes to the initial infection. Among the participants in the study, there were about 30,000 breakthrough infections during the Omicron wave, compared with only around 11,000 each in the previous waves driven by the Delta and Beta variants. The study also highlighted that those infected with HIV were more vulnerable to being hospitalised with Omicron. “They (those being hospitalised) are more likely to have HIV and less likely to have other comorbidities as compared to the Beta and Delta period,” Gray said. HIV prevalence in South Africa is about 13%. A separate study by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases of South Africa (NICD) on Friday suggested that Omicron may be cause less severe disease than previous variants, even among unvaccinated people. (Editing by Jason Neely and Jane Merriman) View the full article

Published by DPA A replica of Monet's house can be seen at the exhibition "Monet's Garden" in Berlin. Christoph Soeder/dpa In the digital art world, immersive experiences are the order of the day. In museums around the world, visitors are being asked to don virtual reality headsets or explore exhibition spaces made of walls of LEDs responding to their movements. Berlin is now doubling down on this interactive art trend with two exhibitions bringing big names into virtual worlds from January onwards. The focus is on French impressionist Claude Monet and Italian inventor and artist Leonardo da Vinci. Until March 15, “Monet’s Garden” in the city’s Alte Münze (Old Mint) aims to transport spectators into the Monet’s Impressionist world, all while exploring the halls of a historic city-centre coin mint where countless euros and marks were previously made. The curators have designed three rooms in which parts of the artist’s famous garden and house in Giverny near Paris have been virtually – and literally – recreated. The digital elements and animations, borrowed from and influenced by Monet’s famous paintings, come together into one large art work space. Also in Berlin, the “Genius Immersive Experience” exhibition is setting its sights on the works of da Vinci from January 28 to March 31. Organizers say the inventions and ideas of the painter, sculptor, architect, anatomist, mechanic and engineer can be discovered in an entirely new way in large light-filled spaces where visitors are surrounded on all sides by sounds and visuals. View the full article